in plain sight
by Gray lines
Summary: sometimes rules can be little more than excuses used to fuel destructive insecurities. but soul can't stand sitting alone slowly being eaten away by loneliness and depression when he knows the girl he loves is somewhere alone bandaging herself up. he can't let the space between them to brake their sanity even if its as thin as a Meister's mask. secret identity au.
1. chapter 1

a blinking mirror a sight that to anyone else would have been unsettling, scary even. after all mirrors don't usually make it a habit to flash like an alarm clock into the empty space of a bathroom.

but for a select few it means everything wonderful and thrilling and deadly. it means they have exactly twelve minuted after mission briefing to don their respective armor and meet their partners for battle.

it means the lives of thousands depend on them. on their skill, teamwork, and secrecy.

because the dwma is a secret organization know to only those on the inside, and one whose main goal is to match demon weapons with advanced humans know as Meisters and recruit them to battle kishin eggs.

meisters from across the globe are brought together with their soul mate, a person who is supposedly born for the sole purpose of being together with their meisters and fighting kishins.

all the blinking meant tonight however is that kim was definitely going to chew him out tomorrow when he was falling asleep during class instead of helping her with the science project. however he was going to see his partner tonight so she could could kiss his ass. no one was going to knock the shit eating grin off his face.

he didn't bother changing out of his sweat pants and shirt combo opting instead to not destroy another pair of jeans incase he did need to shift out of weapon form in battle.

they had been together for three years. three years of fighting to the death alongside each other and risking their necks again and again all for no one, not even each other to know who the credit belonged to.

by DWMA law no one is allowed to know the identity of a meister or weapon. not even partners.

Ever since the kishin Asura had decided to start an uprising using public support earned in heroic battle, an uprising that eventually ended with Asura literally swallowing his weapon to keep from being abandoned, no partners were allowed to know each others identity.

and it drove him crazy that she wouldn't even bend a rule for him. he needed to know that she was well taken care of. that she treated her wounds after missions and remembered to take her meds. he needed the extra support for and from her that would come with an inclusive relationship.

but she was just so stubborn and a goody two shoes to boot. most partners ignored the stupid rules. they revealed themselves on the first mission or soon after. then there's idiots like blackstar that don't even try to hide who he is running around in assassin gear and screaming his name in and out of the mask.

soul knew the identity of the infamous death the kid and his partners the Brooklyn devils, granted

it wasn't difficult to spot the symmetry rants from the guy or the short chick with syco tendencies and a soft spot for long necked animals.

but the fact that he had touched souls with another human being and doesn't even know her name, it bothers him. a lot.

she doesn't go by an alias like kid or stage name like blackstar. both of them happen to be In souls class, one as Dean Mortimer Jr. and the other as blake star (the idiot literally just changed his first names pronunciation)

she just doesn't use a name. he goes by eater and he calls her book worm or tiny tits depending on his mood. she's just so secretive and it makes him more than a little curious as to why she doesn't trust him.

you'd think being willing to die for each other is the kinda bond that comes with a healthy helping of trust but she just doesn't see it that way.

who knows maybe enough time and lame middle school teasing will be enough to crack her. preferably before she put a crack in his skull.


	2. chapter 2

being called while she was in the middle of a shower was definitely the new number one on maka's list of 'why me'.

so a bit of spluttering and water splashing later she was seated on her toilet soaking wet and wrapped in a towel all in front of Lord death, her boss.

he couldn't have looked more amused she on the other hand was redder than a fire truck and, yeah still half naked.

he briefed her quickly on her mission and wished her better luck for the night.

she had to blow dry her hair, just lucky that she was almost finished and not covered in soap as she so easily could gave been.

she exchanged her towel for her battle armor, thanking God once again for whoever developed the science behind stretchy tights that could take a bullet, and tied her hair up as best she could while fighting her cursed curls. no time to straighten her hair.

her coat was slipped on and her mask stuffed into her purse to keep the neighbors from recognizing her.

a block from the meet site she slipped her mask from her bag and tied it behind her head.

the dense plastic a simple white with dark lines acting as fake cracks running across from chin to temple. dark rings surrounded her eyes and a single vine ran across the right side thin with tiny green leaves.

she had sketched it absent mindedly the night before they were required to make masks before meeting their partner candidates. she was lucky to have the sketch with her.

soul on the other hand had gone a bit simpler leaving his mask entirely blank. nothing but white hair and plastic to frame his burning red eyes.

the sight was intimidating and striking. though he lost a bit of credit when he opened his mouth. the scary monster front replaced by a distinct feeling that she had just been left to babysit a middle school kid with no promise of payment.

but she couldn't complain to much. at least she wasn't stuck with blackstar. poor Camellia. from what maka hears they're together inside and out of the mask, which is technically against the rules but hey shes a teachers pet not a snitch.

besides it seemed like she was the only one who fallowed that rule anymore. her parents had been partners for God sakes.

she just wasn't dumb enough to make their mistakes. ninety percent of people chose their soulmate. who wouldn't really, they are literally the soul chosen to complete yours.

but maka just wasn't good at relationships. of any kind really. outside of college work and her regular bookstore and coffee shop she doesn't commit to anything.

people just weren't reliable. not in the way she needed them to be. post cards and rent checks didn't count.

but her parents really didn't count for anything. least of all as real parents.

and really its just easier to live alone. with the exception of a furry purple stray who seemed to be more a community pet than anything. maka had seen the little puff ball slinking her way from several apartment windows, café doors, and fish shops with a smug 'I just got fed' look.

she was kind of the neighborhood pet. no one knew who she belong to originally but the little black coller clearly read Blair.

maka climbed her way up the fire escape and over the edge of a redbrick building by the south side square where she was told to meet her partner. he was sitting on the other side of the roof a blank white mask turned towards her in question.

she usually wasn't this late but fighting in the desert at night with wet hair was a death wish and no way was she dying tonight.

"got caught in the shower" she answered his unspoken question and mused her poofy pigtails.

he chuckles but nodded. "Was wondering why you looked like you stuck your finger in an outlet.

" are you ready yet? " she growled. it wasn't her fault on top of everything her father had given her curly hair to struggle with.

he slouched over to her watching as the pout on her face slowly melted off as his soul caressed hers. he was flirting through wavelengths but she was too naive to realize and simply relaxed under the pleasant feeling.

her soul grabbed his not unharshly in a hurry to resonate. it nocked the air out of his lungs but he welcomed the feeling of her taking up space in his head as his body traded flesh for steel.

she flew from rooftop to rooftop scythe staff used to poll vault. she stopped when their resonance finally spread her soul perception wide enough to get a lock on the target.

one Nannie Doss, a woman better known as the black widow, had been charged with the murder of five husbands and thrown in jail. she escaped prison two hours previously and was slotted for dwma execution.

make found the woman in a public restroom chopping her long black hair of with a pair of sewing scissors and attempting to bleach it blonde. the bottle of bleach was thrown at her but deflected easily.

the woman then flew at them scissors clutched in one fist. the consumption of human souls led to her distorted figure. her curves were grossly exaggerated leaving barely a pencils width of waist to hold up her gargantuan breasts and thick hips. her once long hair had been chopped crookedly the left side three feet shorter than the right.

her prison clothes were covered in blood presumably from a latest kill. the consumption of pure souls was as addictive as any drug and three months of cold Turkey was enough to drive most into a killing spree. she didn't even stick to her pattern and marry them first.

maka dogged the woman and threw a blow into her abdomen knocking her back a few steps.

a high pitched screech blew across the space between them as the woman righted herself. scissors in one hand and the other tensed into claws.

she darted towards them body swaying in poorly proportioned weight. maka ducked under the scissors and swiped her blade through the kishin's ankles.

the woman wobbled for a moment after her feet were severed but did not lose balance. instead she jammed the end of her ankle into the cobble stone and attempted to continue the fight.

however the loss of her feet greatly reduced her speed and maka took full advantage and used her scythe to slice a clean line through her midsection separating at the elbows.

the shiny red soul floating indifferently in the puddle of kishin blood was all that's left of the murderer other than an abused pair of sewing scissors.

 **not the best at writing battle scenes so I tried to leave it vague so you could do what you wanted with it.**


	3. 3

Babysitting drunk blake was so not how soul pictured spending this evening. Actually he hadn't really pictured doing anything that involved stepping off the four sides of his bed. But drunk blake is a force to be reckoned with.

After walking three blocks over and literally climbing up the side of a building blake was throwing another poor unsuspecting victim out of his bed and onto the fire escape with full intention of creating an entourage.

"God damn it blake, I told you didn't want to go drinking." the guy yelled. Blake dropped him from his shoulder and stretched.

"shut up kilik you never get out. its time for social interaction." blake slurred making air quotes over social.

"Dude I have little sisters to wake up in the morning. I don't have time for a hangover. "

"Your not their dad kilik, live a little. " he huffed starting down the street. soul paused locking eyes with the other boy. "Don't look at me, I got drug here too. " kilik huffed. "Sometimes I question my decision to know you. "

"Yeah until I save your ass in battle, again." he stuttered drunken but smug.

"Not like I haven't done the same for you." kilik scoffed.

"And I'm very grateful, now can we get going?" blake huffed annoyed. He started into a drunken jog trying to make a mostly straight line down the street but still ended up dancing from curb to curb every other block

He slowed his pace to an amble once a Greg stone came unto sight "last stop boys." He dug the toe of his shoes into the cracks between brick and scaled his way up the building, not a foot away from a much more convenient fire escape, and slung a window open. He perched on the sill for a moment shouting into the room but quickly lost patience and opted for physical force in the abduction of his latest victim.

There was a struggle before he came pulling a half asleep Dean Mortimer out of the window. Hair surprisingly tidy for the middle of the night.

Elizabeth hung out the window waving. "Bring him back in one piece"

"No promises." Blake called back. kilik and soul shared a pitiful look with the newest arrival but kid was too busy being jostled around on Blake's shoulder and attempting to keep his PJs wrinkle free to notice.

Poor kid was struggling all the way down the road. Yelling about being carried and nights are for beauty sleep and the asymmetry of it all.

He was ignored as much as the others.

Blake led them down a side road and within sight of a bar. it looked pretty run down though still packed full of people like most late night attractions in death city.

cringy rock music was pounding out of the open door, and more than a few drunk guys were hovering by the curb looking like they'd rather be bent over a toilet bowl.

"Alright boys, let's get wasted." blake cackled dragging them inside.

the first drink was bitter but definitely made his surroundings more tolerable. Drinks two and three were a testament to how easily he was pressured and finally drink four had him cherry faced and a little dizzy.

kilik had refused his third and was sitting at a thorough sober despite blake's complaints. And kid, well he had a talk with the bartender about symmetry before trying his first shot and nearly passing out.

Blake was, as always, being loud and obnoxious. The only difference is in this sort of place that tended to cause fights. So karaoke was a must, even if Blake's singing voice made most people want to gouge their eyes out. if he was distracted then he wasn't insulting large drunk men and soul wouldn't have to call someone in to handle the situation.

Someone that was definitely not him because _no._ He only fought kishins. Meisterless and half drunk was not how he wanted to he arrested especially if he could get some dwma "Endangering pure souls" punishment slapped on.

The only problem was he had no idea what he was going to do in attempt to not fall asleep as long as drunk Blake was running the streets technically under his watch as he was the highest ranking dwma member present. even if it was grossly against his will.

soul sighed into the booze and peanut laden air, glancing at kid in his seat beside him all loopy and delirious. he wasn't asleep yet but the glazed look in his eye and unnervingly still demeanor suggested that he would be soon.

Either that or he was dying of alcohol poisoning. It was unlikely after only one shot but who knows reapers might have no alcohol tolerance. It would he a bitch if he died though. how was he going to sit down with his boss and explain that he witnessed his son drink shinigami poison and didn't do anything out of sheer ignorance.

Ok. Calm your shit. That's just the anxiety talking. No need to play the worst possible scenario game. Especially not with alcohol in your vains. We do not wanna see how that effects it. Focus on the task at hand. kid is incapacitated but alive, that's good enough. kilik is sober and glaring at everything that moves, pissed is fine as long as he's alive and accounted for. now where's idiot number 3.

He's no longer singing karaoke. shit. he could be anywhere. "kilik, did you see where Blake went?"

kilik shook his head. shit. "watch kid I'll be right back. " kilik nodded.

OK communicating exclusively through head movement. that's great.

He couldn't get stuck with a more cooperative group of assholes could he? No of course not, because they were rounded up by blackstar who by the way didn't even stay thirty fucking minutes with the people he wanted to go out with so badly, he abducted them from their beds.

He did a lap around the perimeter of the bar, popping his head into the bathroom and the vacant hallway. he hoped to find him doing something mostly harmless, like failing at getting a girls number, or taking a piss.

Lady luck was not on his side. Instead he found him with a fistful of some chicks ass, and her boyfriend getting rightfully peeved.

A fist connected with his jaw and soul winced at the sound. blackstar staggered for a moment, before pulling his phone and keys from his pocket and setting them on a near by table. he turned to the boyfriend and lunged knocking then both back into the bar.

both boys rolled across the floor, punches exchanged and spots of blood dotted the floor.

soul grabbed for blackstar's phone, flipping it open so quickly it near slipped from his grip.

blake's crappy flip phone shuddered to life and soul urged it to hurry and open the contracts.

soul found the speed dial list with a whopping three contacts labeled as fallowing.

3: food,

2: tsubaki,

1: if found drunk or lost.

soul fallowed the directions hitting the contact and waiting through the rings.

"hello?" the voice seemed to be female and mostly asleep though at who even fucking knows o clock in the morning it was to be expected.

"umm, Blake is drunk and fighting, we can't get him off the guy." he tried to relay the urgency of the situation in his voice but only stuttered helplessly.

soul fallowed the two brawlers outside hoping to keep them in sight until help arrived.

"where?" the voice asked accompanied by the sound of shuffled clothing. soul had the feeling that this wasn't the first time who ever was on the other side of the phone, had been called down to some bar in the middle of the night to drag him home.

"uhh" he glanced around for street signs. "A bar, on the corner of coffee and Pritchet."

"I'll be there in five minutes, keep him in sight till I get there. "

soul watched blackstar get thrown back into the building the other guy fallowing him in.

"yeah, will do. "

then the line went dead.

soul shoved the device back into his pocket and hurried into the bar. the bouncer had already gotten mixed up in the brawl and was promptly knocked out. now the bartender had the police on the phone. shit.

He grabbed kid by the collar of his shirt and hauled him into a standing position. " kilik, take him home."

he nodded at the command.

"what about you?" soul shrugged "some girl, apparently knows how to handle this." he gestured awkwardly to the blood that trailed into the building.

"ah, Maka's coming then." kid slurred drunkenly from Kilik's shoulder. kilik shot him a dark look.

"who's maka?"

"his sister. " kid replied easily.

that made sense. only some one unfortunate enough to grow up with this Blake would know how to handle him.

"I thought Blake was adopted."

kilik coughed uncomfortably.

"He is, his foster dad is maka's God father. so they grew up together. I still can't believe the idiot hadn't given her away out of mask." kid slurred his words a bit less, trying to make himself looking competent. it was a bit difficult considering he was such a light weight.

kilik pulled kid sharply to the side. "Dean Mortimer you of all people know the rules on identities. shut your trap."

kid looked him over for a long moment. An uncomfortable air settled between them before kid turned away dramatically almost taking kilik down with him.

"Forget I said anything."

yeah OK that wasn't weird or anything. soul turned to see blake get tossed over a table top. and when he turned back the others were out the door already.

this maka chick better know what she's doing.

 **OK I know this took way too long but I had to rewrite it a few times. I didn't think the concept through all the way when I started and I had to change a few things. I'm happy with this chapter though and for once I'm not going to make you sit through ten damn chapters of suspense before something actually happens.**


	4. 4

maka stumbled across her bedroom, grabbing her jeans off the floor and pulling a sweater over her shoulders.

her one pair if flats had been left by the door the last time she was forced to go shopping with Tsubaki and she grabbed them now deciding it was easier than unbuckling her boots.

she grabbed her keys and slipped down the stairs, barely keeping from falling in her haste.

the air had cooled at sunset and maka pulled her sweater closer buttoning up the dark maroon fabric.

her tank top the only thing underneath was too thin to keep away the chill. she rushed the two blocks south to coffee street and fallowed it down until she found a rather dusty old bar.

she could smell the booze from outside and the pink neon Lady out front continued to spread and close her legs in a way that didn't suggest a strip club more than bad tastes.

she shouldered past a drunk frat boy and found kilik at the door, a whoosy Dean Mortimer hanging off his shoulder.

kilik just nodded his head towards the yelling and rolled his eyes before moving out the door.

Maka pushed her way through the room hesitating around the ring of people that had gathered to watch bathe fight.

"Blake!" she shouted.

when no response came she huffed and skimmed the perimeter looking for a way through. "Blake!" she shouted again hoping to get his attention.

"you must be maka" a voice sounded from beside her. she jumped startled by the figure suddenly standing beside her. He sounded like the guy on the phone. "yeah, are you the one that called?"

The figure nodded. she couldn't see very well in the bars low lighting, it seemed that her idiot brother must have busted one of the lights during the fight and left most of the room in even heavier shadows, but she could make out the movement of his head.

"please tell me you know how to deal with this." his voice sounded tired, almost as tired as she felt.

"yeah, I can handle him, you can go if you want." the figure shook his head. "no, unfortunately, I'm responsible for this idiot."

Maka couldn't help but let out a thin laugh. "I know how that feels. I'm maka by the way, his sister." she tried to stick out her hand for him to shake but evidently the gesture was lost in the darkness, because he made no move to touch her. "soul, I'm a friend."

his tone was casual but he leaned away from her as he spoke, like he was uncomfortable interacting with someone he didn't know.

maka stood on her tiptoes trying to peak over the crowd, she caught a glimpse of some drunk guy getting the shit beat out of him before some drunker guy leaned to the side blocking her view.

"I need to get through the crowd." she scanned her surroundings trying to make out any shape in the dark that might help her.

to her surprise Blake's friend grabbed her sleeve and tugged her through the crowd. Pushing past the worst of the drunks maka managed to spot Blake. He charged past her like a bull intent on his target.

she cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled the magic words. "Blake, the police are here and their going to call Sid if you get arrested." Blake skid for a second before stopping his momentum. he scanned the crowd aeound him spotting his sister easily.

"maka? what are you doing here? its supposed to be guys night."

"your buddies had to call me up to calm you down before you got yourself arrested again."she huffed.

" you know your on probation, what if you get kicked out, what about your partner, what would she think, did you think any of this through before you decided to get yourself into some stupid bar fight? "

Blake blanched. "geez maka your such a nag."

"maybe I wouldn't have to be if some idiot didn't put his entire reputation on the line for three shots of fireball."

"hey, I _do not_ drink fire ball anymore. not after last time."

"we don't have time for this, the owner really did call the cops and you know your boss is going to be all over you if you get in any more trouble."

Blake managed to fallow her back through the crowd. though it wasn't very difficult with people hurrying out of his path. they were afraid to stand in his path after the shit they'd seen him do in the fight and half of them were underaged and needes to get out vefore the cops showed up too.

Maka grabbed Blake's friend and hauled them both out onto the street. she turned in the direction of Blake's place and pushed him. even drunk he was pretty light on his feet and could get home without much trouble as long as nothing shiny distracted him.

She turned back to his friend to let him know he was free to go when she spotted who she assumed was him standing a few paces back on the curb.

He was staring at her in opsen mouth surprise. His burning red gaze too familiar for her comfort.


End file.
